Police in Manassas City, Virginia, are raising eyebrows nationwide by requesting photos of a teen boy's erect penis in a sexting case.

The Washington Post reports authorities and Prince William County prosecutors want a picture of a 17-year-old's erection to compare with evidence from his iPhone. The male, identified by NBC as Trey Simms, allegedly sent a sexually explicit video to his 15-year-old girlfriend after she shared nude photos of herself.

After the girl's mother filed a complaint, Simms was served with petitions from juvenile court. The case was reportedly first dismissed in June when prosecutors forgot to certify that he was a juvenile, but new charges and a search warrant led to his arrest last week. The defendant's lawyer, Jessica Harbeson Foster, told the Post that police then took photos of his genitals against his will.

"The prosecutor's job is to seek justice," Foster said. "What is just about this? ... This is a 17-year-old who goes to school every day, plays football, has never been in trouble with the law before. Now he's saddled with two felonies and the implication that he's a sexual predator."

NBC reports Simms is charged with manufacturing and distributing child pornography. If convicted, he could be forced to register as a sex offender and serve time in prison.

The girl, who has not been named, has not been charged.

The Post reports Simms pleaded not guilty in court July 1, and a new search warrant called for pictures of his erect penis. Foster told the newspaper that lead investigator David E. Abbott planned to "take [Simms] down to the hospital, give him a shot [to make him erect] and then take the pictures that we need."

Foster said Abbott told her that he would then "use special software to compare pictures of this penis to this penis. Who does this? It's just crazy."

Several publications across the country appear to have agreed with Foster's perspective. New York Magazine called the case "shameful," Gawker called it "insane," and Mediaite compared the whole story to a "bad SNL sketch."